XT coming next week

[twowheelstom]

I did another test, this time I have a XT route going on bike external battery power, pretended to stop for fuel turning off the bike and pulled the USB cord out of the power bank. But this time I ignored the continue message and the XT shut off.

I then plugged the USB cord back into the power bank to simulate starting bike up again. Had to press the Agree button on the XT to continue. and my active route re-appeared on the route screen as before.

[FrankB]

The only indication that the XT was back on bike battery power again was to look for a small yellow lightning bolt thru the battery charge icon on the main Where To? - View Map screen. That test was to simulate wiring up mount cable to a keyed on-off lead somewhere on the bike.

Actually the XT has 2 levels of brightness. One is when it is on battery, the other on external power.
When it is running on battery set the brightness to 30-40%. It will remember that.
When it is on external power set it to 90-100%. That to is remembered.

Now when external power is lost, the screen goes dim (30-40%) whenever external power is back the screen goes bright. (90-100%) To me that is more than enough indication.

Wiring up mount cables to an (on-off) keyed power source appears to be more work to do on the Zumo when stopping to fueling up.

Actually it is not. The trick is to leave the XT alone. Dont touch it!
- It will auto shutdown after 15-20 secs if you dont do anything.
- It will autopower on if external power is restored, with the route active.

[twowheelstom]

you give helpful info thanks, so what would be the benefits of wiring up Zumo mount cables directly to bike battery?

[FrankB]

Well I think someone else should answer that. Someone who prefers that. I can only guess. Easier to wire to the battery?

[twowheelstom]

I'm going to look at my motorcycle wiring diagram to see if my bike had keyed on/off leads that the XT mount cable can plug into.

[lkraus]

Any time a recent model Zumo loses external power, it will display a message saying that it is about to turn off. This happens if you remove a running XT from the powered mount, or turn off the ignition with the mount wired to switched power, or disconnect the USB cable when it is providing the power, and also if you just tap the power button. The warning screen also has a cancel button that you can tap to keep the Zumo active (maybe you want the music to continue while you gas up).

The message is misleading because the Zumo will NOT actually turn off - the display turns off and the music will stop, but the Zumo just goes into a sleep mode. The route remains active and the display will return very quickly when the ignition is switched back on or you tap the power button.

To actually shut down the Zumo you must press and hold the power button down until the screen prompts you to turn it off. Turning it back on will take longer and you will see a boot progress indicator that is not needed when awakening from sleep mode.

Leaving the Zumo in sleep mode is fine for a few days. Out of the mount, sleep mode will drain the internal battery over a longer period. In the mount, sleep mode uses about three times as much power as actually turning off the XT, and about sixteen times the power of the empty mount. Wired directly to the motorcycle battery, sleep mode has been known to drain the bike battery in 2-3 weeks.

I recommend finding a way to tap into switched power on the bike. There is probably some circuit that can handle the additional 0.6 amp without blowing a fuse. If in doubt, use a switched circuit to trigger a relay powered by the battery. AND actually shut down the XT if it will be unused for a few days.

[FrankB]

Good point @lkraus to mention the sleep mode. To preserve the battery of the XT over a long period always shut it down by long pressing the power button.

[rbentnail]

Let's get real for a moment- who in his right mind is going to leave his zumo in the bike mount for a few weeks and drain the battery? And let's see a show of hands- who doesn't use a battery tender device when the bike sits for a few weeks, hoping it might start next time? All the "could happens" in the world are negated by the normal sense we're supposed to have.

I prefer to have my device wired directly to the battery so it never shuts off. Many folks ride tank to tank, I get that, but I am not one of them. I rarely drone on for 250-300 miles at a sitting (I have a 6+ gallon tank). I stop often for fluids, stretching and to see new things. I find it annoying to have the gps going off every time I shut the bike off.

[jfheath]

There are a few related issues to consider:

1. If the XT hasn't been used on the road for some distance at some speed either since new or since its last reset to factory conditions, then it behames differently from the way it behaves after it has been on the road. (I don't know what 'some' distance or speed is. But I know it doesn't change behaviour if you do a 5 mile walk with it - as I did when it arrived during covid lock downs).

2. Plugging in the usb cable is not quite the same as switching on the ignition. In the bike cradle, the XT gets power through the cradle and the two pins. If you use the USB A socket, it can recognise that too. The XT knows where it is getting its power from, and it switches the XT mode to the mode it was in the last time that it was powered from the same source. The XT will check if you want to switch mode it it detects a different power input.

3. My XT always goes to sleep when power is supplied from either source - but gives a 15 second warning, which can be dismissed. When it powers up again the same route is loaded and is running in the state that I left it. Assuming the battery hasn't gone flat. Regradless of my comment in 2 - the powered bike cradle, the powered USB car connection or the powered wall socket at my desk - the behaviour was the same.

Except - my powered wall sockets have power and data functionality, so when I plug in the power cable to the wall socket, the XT informs me that it is going into data transfer mode in 20 seconds.

USB Power or Cradle Power ?

I prefer the bike cradle. I have two relays connected to the battery with a single 30A feed from the battery. They feed a number of fused circuits - one group comes on with ignition, one group comes on with accessories. The satnav will come on with the ignition key turned to accessories, so I can power it up without sitting ont he bike with everything else turned on (including headlights).

The satnav goes to sleep when it loses power and it resumes when the powere is restored. Without fail.

------------------

The USB connections are not very sturdy. I have had a few devices on the motorbike which have flimsy connectors. It is not the connector itself that is the problem, it is the way that they are attached to the circuit board. It is a slodered joint onto thin fragile copper tracks on the circuit board, and over time, the vibration loosens the adhesions. The joint vibrates and the thin copper circuit board joint cracks just ofter the solder.

So I make a point of keeping my connect/disconnect operations to a minimum. I'll leave the lead plugged into the XT and unplug it at the wall socket. I'll use the car mount - its suction cup stuck to a plastic tray on my desk so that I am not resting the Zumo on its back and putting strain onto the USB port. As I type - I have my XT in a spare bike cradle on a woooden mount, and a 590 and 595 both charging face down with their leads stickup up from the bike.

In the car there is not much in the way of vibration at the USB connection. On the bike, there is a lot of vibration.

[danham]

Frank & Tom,

I always stress that wiring to the battery is my personal preference, so no disrespect for those who prefer switched power. I have two (EDIT: 3) reasons for my preference:

1. there is little or no danger of running down a healthy battery by wiring direct to the battery.

2. too many times at fuel stops on my previous bike, with a switched setup and a zumo 660, I would miss or forget to tap the Stay On button and as everyone was pulling out after fueling I would be sitting there waiting for the 660 to power up and boot. The XT is faster to power up than the 660, but it can still be inconvenient. EDIT: I see from other posts that it does not shut down but rather goes to "sleep," from which it recovers quickly, so this is less of a reason. Which brings me to #3:

3. Wiring direct to the battery is simple. Finding a switched circuit or hooking up a relay can be a challenge, especially if you are not familiar with 12v systems.

-dan